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We know these are challenging and unprecedented times for our members, most especially public servants working at the federal level. We also know that you are receiving a cascade of news every day—sometimes it feels like every minute—and trying to make sense of it all.

To help cut through some of the noise, ASPA is sending this e-digest, Federal Workforce in Turmoil, a curated selection of articles and commentaries with an eye toward sources that may not typically end up in your inbox. We hope to capture what you need to know for as long as you need to know it.

We encourage you to forward this digest to those in your network to be added to our distribution list.

"Nobody knows anything." Displaced IRS staff move from one project to another with few details why

Jory Heckman, Government Executive

September 29

Mid-career IRS employees involuntarily moved to entry-level jobs they had no prior experience doing are getting new assignments, as part of the agency’s latest shakeup.

Read More Here

Pentagon to cut 20% of general and admiral positions by Jan. 1

Rachel S. Cohen, Federal News Network

September 29

The Pentagon is moving forward with a directive to cut 20% of positions held by generals and admirals by Jan. 1, a Pentagon official confirmed.

Read More Here

"Zombified" C.D.C., Hobbled by Cuts, Struggles to Fulfill Scientific Mission

Apoorva Mandavilli, New York Times (gift link)

September 26

The Trump administration’s widespread layoffs in early 2025 cut 18 percent of the C.D.C.’s staff. But new personnel data, compiled by a group of former federal scientists and reported here for the first time, indicate that the agency’s staff has dwindled far more, as large numbers of employees retired or resigned. As of May 2026, the C.D.C. had 30 percent fewer employees than it did before the layoffs.

Read More Here

Following court order, OPM replaces "favorite EO" question for jobseekers

Erich Wagner, Government Executive

September 25

The controversial essay prompt asking federal job seekers about their favorite Trump administration policy or executive order is officially on the way out, in the wake of a court ruling earlier this month finding it likely violated applicants’ First Amendment rights.

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Shutdown mass-layoff policy rescinded as part of settlement with unions

Jory Heckman, Government Executive

September 25

The Trump administration is withdrawing its authorization of widespread layoffs across the federal workforce during a government shutdown. Federal employee unions reached a settlement with the administration, putting a pause on a lawsuit that challenged widespread layoffs carried out during a 43-day government shutdown last year.

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FLRA Ruling puts ball back in courts’ court on Trump’s union EOs

Erich Wagner, Government Executive

September 23

The National Treasury Employees Union said that a new ruling from a semi-adjudicative agency bolsters its argument in the fight over whether President Trump can strip wide swathes of the federal workforce of their collective bargaining rights.

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IRS and Social Security will see more employees quit without advanced leave, senators warn

Jory Heckman, Government Executive

September 23

Senate Democrats are warning that new limits on annual leave and sick time at the IRS and the Social Security Administration will push more employees out the door, making it harder for Americans to get assistance from these agencies.

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Congress—not the president—should appoint the next GAO head, bipartisan coalition argues

Sean Michael Newhouse, Government Executive

September 22

A bipartisan coalition argued that lawmakers should enact reforms so that the next head of the Government Accountability Office is appointed without the president’s involvement.

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Public trust in government down to 27%, research shows

Drew Friedman, Federal News Network

September 22

While Americans’ trust in government remains persistently low, public approval ratings of federal employees are showing some positive signs.

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IRS watchdog audits employee reassignments, as agency looks to extend some tours of duty

Jory Heckman, Government Executive

September 21

An IRS watchdog is taking a closer look at the agency’s temporary reassignment of mid-career employees to frontline entry-level jobs many of them had no prior experience doing.

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Lawmakers call on leadership to override Trump’s planned pay freeze

Erich Wagner, Government Executive

September 21

More than 100 members of Congress urged House and Senate leaders to advance legislation rejecting President Trump’s planned pay freeze for most civilian federal workers next year.

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NASA employees: EEOC committed "flagrant distortions" to decertify class complaint

Erich Wagner, Government Executive

September 19

A group of National Aeronautics and Space Administration employees has challenged the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s decision last month to strip them of class-action status in a long-running discrimination case, accusing the commission’s Republican majority of committing “flagrant distortions” of the facts and law.

Read More Here

Political appointee turnover at unprecedented levels under Trump administration

Drew Friedman, Federal News Network

September 18

Political appointments made under the Trump administration have reached unprecedented levels, while at the same time those appointees are leaving in record numbers, and often after short tenures.

Read More Here

Commentary

The System for Using Evidence to Improve Federal Programs Has Been Gutted

Lauren Supplee via Substack

September 21

More than 10,000 PhDs have left the government under Trump. Estimates of the loss of the federal scientific workforce vary from ten to twenty to as high as forty percent.

Read More Here

Resources

When told to break the law, must feds just follow orders?

Joshua Gotbaum and Sean O'Keefe, Brookings Institution

September 10

The Follow the Rules Act, signed by President Trump in 2017, prohibits firing, demoting or sanctioning federal workers who decline to carry out orders that violate the Constitution, statutes or regulations.

Read More Here

Inside the Implementation of Schedule Policy/Career

Nick Bednar, Lawfare

According to Scott Kupor, 97 percent of the positions are at or above the GS-15 level, the highest grade on the General Schedule pay scale. The order also transfers some GS-13 and GS-14 employees, mostly those working within the Office of Management and Budget. This initial order transfers significantly fewer employees to Schedule Policy/Career than the 50,000 initially estimated.

Read More Here

Schedule P/C Fact Sheet

Produced by Rise Up, AFGE, Civil Service Strong and Partnership for Public Service

June 2026

Read More Here

Virtual Go Bag

American Foreign Service Association

AFSA strongly recommends working now to prepare a file with the following documents that pertain solely to you and emailing them to a personal email account.

Read More Here

Civic Match

Connecting top public sector talent with essential local government jobs.

Read More Here

FormerGov.com

Former Gov is a platform to connect former government employees and military professionals with those who could benefit from their experience, knowledge, and insight. Search and find the expertise you seek.

Read More Here

FEEA Layoff Loans Program

From the Federal Employee Education and Assistance Fund

Read More Here

Maryland loan program for laid-off federal workers

Marylanders affected by federal layoffs this year can apply for an interest-free state loan to help them pay the bills in the short term.

Read More Here

Virginia Resources for Impacted Federal Workers

Resources for impacted workers listed here including unemployment insurance, job search options and more.

Read More Here

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